IN BRIEF (Page 13)

SAFE: Reduce debt holdings

Chinese banks must cut their short-dollar positions and also reduce their short-term foreign debt holdings, the currency regulator said on Wednesday.

In a short statement on its website, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) said it wants to prevent illegal capital inflows and protect national financial security.

Chinese banks with short-dollar positions of $2 billion or more as of Nov 8 2010 must reduce them by 60 percent, SAFE said. Banks with a dollar short of $2 billion or less must cut this position in half.

Jiangxi to Raise capacity

Jiangxi Copper Co Ltd expects China's copper consumption to rise by 10 to 12 percent in 2011, Huang Dongfeng, assistant to the general manager, said on Wednesday after the company announced its annual results.

The company said it planned to expand copper refining capacity to 1.5 million tons by 2015, more than 50 percent higher than its planned 2011 output of 940,000 tons. China is the world's top consumer of copper and Jiangxi Copper is China's top producer.

Rare earths prices double

Prices of rare earth metals and shares of related Chinese companies have been on a bull run in China on the eve of the introduction of a key resources tax expected in April.

Since the beginning of this year, average prices of 17 elements that are vital ingredients in high-tech products have doubled in China. Speculative funds are now suspected of targeting the industry for huge returns, analysts said.

PBOC to test IC bank cards

The People's Bank of China (PBOC) will choose 30 to 40 pilot cities to issue integrated circuit (IC) bank cards, instead of those with a magnetic stripe, in an effort to ensure the safe use of bank cards, the PBOC said on Wednesday on its website.

Nationwide commercial banks should issue IC cards beginning on Jan 1, 2013. Before the end of June this year, seven banks, including Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and Agricultural Bank of China, should have begun the process, according to the PBOC.

Region to lead in wind power

Installed wind power capacity in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, China's leading builder of wind farms by region, will top 13 gigawatts (gW) by the end of this year, an executive with the local power grid company said on Wednesday.

The capacity will account for more than half of China's total capacity at the beginning of this year, according to data from the National Energy Administration.

The Inner Mongolia autonomous region may install 30 gW of wind power generating capacity by 2015 and 50 gW by 2020, Zhang Fusheng, general manager of Inner Mongolia Power Corp, said at an industry conference in Beijing.

China Daily - Agencies

(China Daily 03/31/2011 page13)